Blaise vs Phil
by A Midsummer Night's Dreamer
Summary: Chapter #6 now added! Blaise needs a soulmate, and who better than Poppy's Nightworld-hater brother, Phil?
1. On the Road

"Eric, are you sure you told Blaise to meet us over here", Thea Harman asked her boyfriend and soul mate, Eric Ross __

Disclaimer: none of the characters mentioned in the story belong to me, they are the brilliant work of L.J. Smith and I'm just borrowing them for my fanfic. Please don't sue me, I can't afford it. ;-)

This is a fanfic that I originally started back in Gr. 10 with my friend. I got the idea when I decided that Blaise needed a soulmate. We wrote the first chapter together, so it is only right that I give her the due credits. The story will contain spoilers for all of the Night World books except Strange Fate, which isn't out yet. ::Sigh:: I hope you enjoy the story! And please review it when you're done, any comment is welcome.

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Blaise vs. Phil

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Chapter One

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By: A Midsummer Night's Dreamer

The first chapter in cooperation with my good friend, Hajira A. 

"Eric, are you sure you told Blaise to meet us over here?" Thea Harman asked her boyfriend and soulmate, Eric Ross, for the third time in five minutes.

"Thea, relax. She said she'd be here, you know Blaise, she has a completely new way of defining fashionably late'." Eric tried to reassure her, although it seemed as if he was trying to convince himself rather than Thea. Blaise and Thea were cousins, and both of them were born witches. They were the last few descendents of Hellewise, ancestress of all witches. Blaise had been sent to the Convent a week after Thea had been given the Cup of Lethe, which Thea had never consumed, thanks to Blaise's quick-witted thinking. Before Blaise had left, Thea had practically begged her to treat humans a little better than her usual way–as if they were disposable puppets. However, Thea doubted if Blaise would ever uphold the promise as well as she said she would.

As they looked down the never-ending street, Thea thought about her life after the trial. She hadn't forgotten her teachings, her heritage, or lost any of her memories, but she was forced to leave her Circle friends, her Grandmother and her cousin, Blaise. Not that she regretted her decision with Eric; being with your soulmate was the ultimate happiness. It was a feeling of contentment like no other; still, sometimes she wished things would go back to the way they were...

"What are you two doing standing here like a couple of idiots for sale?" Thea grimaced at the shrilling voice and turned around, there was Blaise, standing and looking fashionably beautiful as ever, with her mane of dark hair tumbling down to her waist like black waterfall and smoldering gray eyes. It was no wonder that boys fell head over heels when she walked past them. Blaise was one of those people who gave "drop dead gorgeous" a completely literal meaning. 

"Hello Blaise, and nice to see you too." Thea said dryly. And Eric, the ever faithful, nodded and said a simple "Hello", which made Blaise send death glares his way. Eric was one of the few people who could withstand Blaise's aphrodisiac charm and he was very lucky that he was still alive today.

The three of them got into the silver convertible that came with Blaise, "From a new admirer?" Eric asked Blaise with a grin, and Thea raised her eyebrow at her cousin disapprovingly. "Relax, it's just a present from a buddy, and no, he's not in any mental asylums, yet." Blaise said with the face of an angel. "A _buddy_?" Thea said incredulously, "and what do you mean _yet_? Please don't get creative Blaise, you promised." And she emphasized on the word "promised". However Blaise ignored her as usual and pretended to concentrate on the map. 

Eric was driving, while Blaise gave him the directions. They were going to Las Vegas, for a meeting of Circle Daybreak. "So where're we meeting this time?" asked Thea from the backseat, her voice still holding a trace of grudge against Blaise for making her sit there. "At the high-and-mighty Night Lord's, where else?" Blaise answered sarcastically while giving her a look that said it's so obvious'.

"Oh, did Thierry and Hannah come back from Medicine Rock yet?" Eric asked with sudden interest. 

"Yeah, though I wish they hadn't. Thierry's going to freak when he sees the credit card bills." Blaise said with a smirk. 

"What credit card bills?" Thea asked curiously. 

"You mean, you don't know, our royal Prince has been seriously culture deprived, and he's trying to make up for the last sixteen years." Blaise paused, and then added, "Just last week he decided to learn to play every musical instrument in the Woodwind section." 

"Oh, God. Are you telling me that there's a stash of violins in the mansion right now? Thea paused and then added more quietly, "I hope I get a sound-proofed room." 

"Actually, I think they voted to put Delos into a sound-proofed room." Blaise replied with a smirk.

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They'd been driving for almost an hour now, after a short stop at the Gas Station, they went on, Blaise had turned her irresistible charm on the poor Bus Boy and they'd gotten 10 liters of gas plus his phone number for free.

"Blaise, are you really going to call him?" Eric, paused and then added, "I feel sorry for the poor guy." 

"Yeah, so do I, maybe on our way back, we could stop again and get more gas for free." Blaise said suggestively. 

"No, you won't." Thea said firmly and then added, "Because you're not going to have a car anymore, I'm going to ask someone to return the car to your _buddy_." Thea said with conviction in her tone.

"Don't be silly, and tell me something, do you get cars like this every day, moreover for free, Hello, I think not. And, besides if you do that, we'll have to take the bus home, which I most certainly don't want to." Blaise said with a hint of irritation in her voice. 

"We'll see." Thea said quietly.

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"I'm starving." Blaise said suddenly, a few hours later. "So am I." Thea admitted. "Alright, we stop at the next gas station, refuel, have lunch and then Blaise you're driving." Eric said. "No, she isn't, if she drives, either we're gonna get ourselves killed or be in jail with in the first hour, So I vote, that I should be the one to drive." Thea said in a determined tone. "Yeah, you're right." Eric agreed. 

"WHAT, When did this become Thea and Eric's car, I thought it was Blaise's car, and nobody's driving, I'm the only one's who's driving." Blaise said in an angry tone.

"No, you're not going to drive, I mean it Blaise, or maybe you've forgotten the one time you did drive, and nearly gotten the both of us killed, I'm sorry Blaise but you're not driving. If you do drive, I'm going to make sure of that as soon as we reach Vegas; the car goes back the way it came. It's either the car or you're not driving; so make your choice and it better be a good one." Thea said. 

"Alright, fine!" Blaise said dejectedly and then added more quietly, "I should have known better than to let the either of you drive."

A few minutes later, they came upon a McDonalds, had lunch and were back on their way before they knew it.

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A little Spoiler for the next chapter:

It was late night before they reached the mansion. Nilsson, a young CIA look-alike, opened the door; he told them that everyone had arrived except for James, Poppy and her brother, Phil.

Blaise and James were cousins and had known each other since they were kids, she'd met Poppy once or twice but she'd never seen or met Phil. _And judging from what I heard about him,_ thought Thea, _it's going to be a long weekend._


	2. The Task

"Eric, are you sure you told Blaise to meet us over here", Thea Harman asked her boyfriend and soul mate, Eric Ross __

Anybody tried blood donating? It's fun! Well, maybe not the needle part, but just lying there, doing nothing, and get cookies and drinks afterward. What an easy way to help the society! Okay, I'm rambling here, but if anyone cares to guess, yes, I donated my first pack of blood today, yehhhhh! Now, is it still supposed to hurt after five hours? ::ouch!::

Disclaimer: That's right, you heard me, I don't own them, and if you try to sue me I'll sic Quinn on you.J I do own, however, the story plot and any new characters that my chaotic mind happens to come up with. If you wish to use them, ask me first. Now, without further ado, here's chapter two!

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Blaise vs. Phil

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Chapter Two

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By: A Midsummer Night's Dreamer

It was near midnight when the trio got to the Descouedres mansion. All was quiet, except for the sound of three pairs of feet walking across the lawn. A single light shone brightly on at the front porch, although not bright enough so that Eric could've detected the small statue of a garden gnome standing right in his path.

"Oww!" exclaimed Eric, holding his injured foot, "What was that?"

"Relax, it's just a garden gnome, it's not going to jump up and bite you." Blaise said teasingly.

"Blaise!" Thea admonished, "Leave Eric alone, even you can't see that good in the dark."

"No, but I won't bump into anything and make a fool of myself either." Retorted Blaise.

"We're here," Eric said quietly.

Before Blaise had a chance to ring the doorbell, Thea dragged her to the side rather forcefully. "Thea? Do you want us to spend the night out here? And quite pulling so hard! This is an original Calvin Klein shirt." 

"Stop worrying about your clothes, Blaise. Now, remember what you promised, behave, okay?" Thea whispered.

"You dragged me here for this? Oh, give me a break, Thea. I ALWAYS behave." Blaise went back to ringing the doorbell.

Nilsson, a young CIA look-alike, opened the door, "Hello Miss Blaise, Mr. Eric." He proceeded on shaking their hands, "Ah, Miss Thea, I did not see you there, come in, please." Nilsson held the door open for the three while they ventured indoors, then he promptly shut the door and turn to them. "I presume that you're all very tired and wish to retire to your respective rooms, however, before you do, Mr. Thierry had requested a short briefing with all of you."

"Lucky us," muttered Blaise.

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The big oak doors that lead to the office was closed, but light could be seen from the little space under the door. Thea knocked tentatively, and a voice came immediately from the inside, "Come in, please."

Thea opened the door slowly and stepped in, she could hear the other coming up behind her and someone closed the door quietly, as not to disturb anyone who was asleep at this time of the night. 

Behind a desk with document practically piled up to the ceiling, sat the Lord of the Nightworld, Thierry Descouedres. The light from the desk lamp casting shadows on his features, making him looking more menacing than he actually is. Eric gulped, "You wanted to see us, Thierry?"

"Ah, yes, I see you got here earlier than expected." Thierry got up from his chair and walked around to stand right in front of the trio. Up close, he looks no older than nineteen years old, with white blond hair and dark, dark eyes; he was actually a very handsome guy. "The reason that I want to see you before you do anything else is because I want you," he indicated to Thea, "to host the next Circle Daybreak meeting." 

"Me? What about you?" Thea managed to say.

"Since only one Wildpower is yet to be discovered, I thought it would be best to focus my attention on finding that person. And you're the most responsible person in the group, thus I have complete confidence that you would do well." Thierry replied calmly.

"Wait a minute," Blaise cut in suddenly, "You want Thea--alone--to organize a Circle Daybreak meeting that involves stacks of documents and people from all over the world? That's impossible!"

"Quite the contrary, I did not plan for Thea to do this alone, you and Eric will be helping her." Replied Thierry.

"We will?" came two simultaneous inquiries.

"Of course you will, you can be quite efficient when motivated, Blaise, so I believe that you will also be able to act accordingly for this. You can also enlist the help of any Circle Daybreak members that is already here. You can get Ash." Thierry said with the faintest trace of laughter.

"Yeah, that'll be a lot of help." Blaise rolled her eyes.

"When will we start?" Eric asked.

"You will begin tomorrow, right after some of the other Daybreakers get back from their respective vacations. Here is a list of all things that must be completed this weekend." Thierry handed them a thin binder.

"Great, all work and no play huh? Why did I leave the Convent then?" Blaise murmured, to no one in particular.

"I do believe that it's past your bedtimes," Thierry ignored Blaise's silent remarks, which, to his acute vampire hearing, was clear as a bell, "Forgive me for the held up but you do need to rest if you are going to be working tomorrow."

He went back to reading and signing documents and left the three to retreat to their rooms.

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"So Nilsson, do you know who's coming tomorrow?" asked Eric as they ascended the grand staircase.

"I believe that Miss Poppy and Mr. James is coming back, and Mr. Phil is coming with them also. Mr. Quinn and Ash are here already and Miss Gillian and Mr. David will be arriving tomorrow evening." Replied Nilsson.

"Who's Phil?" Blaise suddenly got interested in the conversation.

"Poppy's twin brother," Eric replied as Thea shot a warning glance at Blaise, "He's pretty protective over Poppy, I heard he offered to fight James and Ash one time."

"That little pixie's twin brother? What does he look like, an elf?" Smirked Blaise.

"No, actually he looks quite different from Poppy, from what I've heard. He's supposed to be tall, blond and classically handsome." Said Thea, "And he doesn't like Nightworlders much, so he's not the type for you, Blaise, don't get any ideas!" she added hastily.

"I'll be the judge of that." Retorted Blaise, "Doesn't like Nightworlders, huh? Well, this should be interesting"

Any further comment from Thea was blocked by the thick wooden door, which Blaise promptly closed upon entering her room.

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And now, a sneak preview into the next chapter:

"Blaise, this is my brother, Phil. Phil, this is Blaise, she's a witch." Poppy introduced the two.

Phil reached out a hand and said to Blaise, "Nice to meet you, Blaise." 

"Hello Phil." Blaise said in her most seductive voice and clasped the hand. 

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Liked it? Hate it? Please review!


	3. The Meeting Part 1

"Eric, are you sure you told Blaise to meet us over here", Thea Harman asked her boyfriend and soul mate, Eric Ross **__**

Oh wow! You like it, you really like it! ::Sniffle:: Thanks to everyone who reviewed, this is the first time I tried to write something for fun rather than for school work, and your comments really helps! So far, no new characters have appeared, hmm maybe my mind's on vacation Let's get as much done as possible before it gets back! Oh yeah, and the story parts in italics represents what the character(s) was thinking.

Disclaimer: As if anyone really read this anymore, you just skip right to the story, right? Well just in case I said I don't own them, now read the story! 

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Author's Note: Sorry this one took a bit long, my computer decided to rebel and I had to format it three times yesterday. ::Sigh:: That's a great way to spend your holidays.

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Blaise vs. Phil

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Chapter Three

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By: A Midsummer Night's Dreamer

The mansion was still quiet at seven o'clock in the morning, most of the residents are still asleep and those that are awake tried to make as less noise as possible.

Of course, this is only applied to those that have the ability to be ashamed of themselves.

"So Quinn, where's that soulmate of yours?" Ash lounged on the sofa in the living room, holding a steaming cup of black coffee, the stereo beside him blaring out some kind of Rap music.

"Out, said she need to get some exercises before her limbs permanently de-evolve from lazing around in the house." Quinn leaned against the doorframe, "You know, I'm quite surprised that you're up this early, didn't you used to sleep in until noon?"

"Sorry, that only happens if I went to sleep the night before, which I didn't." Ash yawned, then sipped his coffee.

"Really? I didn't know there was a Nightworld club in the middle of the dessert." Quinn raised one eyebrow and watch as Ash made a face at the coffee. "I'd be careful if I were you, that's some powerful stuff there, you'll be jumping on your bed in no time."

"Highly unlikely, besides, I wasn't partying, I was trying to get some sleep but then I thought of Mare, and, well" Ash trailed off.

Quinn grinned, "A case of insomnia, well! Never thought I'd see the day when Ash Redfern stayed up all night thinking about a girl, you must be getting old."

"Touché, Quinn. I knew you'd understand." Ash replied sarcastically, "You do know who's the real old geezer here, don't you?"

"Well, if you have to get all technical about years" Quinn decided against a smart comeback, this is way too early in the morning to start an argument, and settled instead to sympathetically pat Ash on the back, "Look man, if you miss her, why don't you just call? I'm sure she would love to hear from you."

"Maybe, but then again, there's the promise that I would redeem myself first before meeting her." Ash set the now cooled drink on the coffee table and stood up, stretching. "I think I'll go take a nap now, listening to you talk is making me tired." He left the room before Quinn could come up with a witty remark.

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Quinn shook his head, _sometimes I don't know why I bother_, the blaring stereo gave a funny clicking sound before it died down, smoke rising from it. Quinn shrugged, reached over and unplugged the machine; he never did like Rap music anyway.

There were sounds in the kitchen, which meant someone else was up as well. Quinn strode through the living room and pushed open the swinging door to the kitchen. 

And froze.

There was someone there all right. Someone with a green mask that covered the entire face except for the eyes and mouth, sitting at one of the stool beside the counter and was drinking something that smelled a lot like hot cocoa. This person was wearing a thick red bathrobe and his/her hair was wrapped in a white towel. No, Quinn decided, this had to be a girl, no self-respecting men in this house would be caught looking like that, even if it is seven o'clock in the morning.

The girl had obviously heard the sound of the door opening; she turned in her chair and looked in Quinn's direction. Still holding the steaming cup of cocoa in her hand.

"Hello, Quinn." She said.

Quinn recognized the voice, he couldn't decide whether to laugh or scream in shock, so he did neither, instead, he went to get himself a cup of cocoa and replied nonchalantly, "Good morning Blaise, I didn't realize that it was Halloween already, though I must say, green is your colour."

"Lay off, Quinn, I'm not in the mood. I didn't have enough time to do my beauty treatment yesterday so I have to do it this morning." Blaise yawned. 

"Really? Whatever happened to the beauty that your swore was a hundred percent natural?" He just couldn't resist teasing her.

Blaise gave him a sour look that would've killed any lesser man, then she got up and walked toward the door that leads into the hallway. 

"You know, the next thing you'd find would probably be wrinkles on your forehead from frowning so much. Perhaps age had caught up with you." Quinn commented.

"Oh, bite me." Came her sharp reply from the other side of the door.

"Love to." Quinn called after her.

"You know, if I didn't know you so well, I'd swear that you were flirting with her." A female's voice sounded from behind him.

Quinn turned around, and there stood his soulmate, Rashel. Her long black hair was tied up into a ponytail and a thin layer of perspiration was on her forehead. She wore all black shirt and pants and brown hiking boots. Quinn smiled at her, "Good morning, kitten, how was your workout?"

"Dreadful," Rashel returned the smile, "There really isn't much danger out here in the middle of nowhere, unless you count the occasional hawks." She walked forward and hugged Quinn. "Perhaps next time I should consider taking you along, at least you can spar with me."

"And then I'd get knocked on the ground and tied with a rope, right?" Quinn grinned and held her tighter. 

Rashel laughed, "You like it, admit it. Besides, there're things I do to make up for it." She kissed him lightly on the lips.

"Umm that's true. I think I'll endure getting my ass kicked just for this." Quinn's hands slipped lower until they came to rest at her waist, pulling Rashel closer to him. To his surprise, Rashel pushed him away. "None of that now, I need to take a shower and eat something before I starve." 

"I'll make you something, how about an omelet?" Quinn felt like he would do anything to keep Rashel here.

"That sounds good, you just go ahead and start on that, and I'll go take a shower." Rashel smirked and walked away.

Quinn groaned, and started towards the refrigerator, _when am I going to learn to keep my mouth shut?_

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Cold water splashed at her face, washing away the green facial mask. Blaise grabbed a face towel and started wiping her face dry, then she unwrapped the towel on her head and looked into the mirror.

The girl that looked back at her had milky-white skin and smoldering gray eyes that appeared to hold all the mysteries in the world. Dark curls of damp hair cascading around her face. Her lips were still bright red from the shower and her cheeks were rosy. Blaise smiled, she was, all in all, simply breathtaking. That Phil boy is going to get quite a surprise, she thought, lips curling up at the corner to form a tiny seductive grin. Now, what to wear?

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"I don't understand why they're not here yet," Thea was saying to Hannah as Blaise came down the stairs. "They called in about an hour ago from the airport, it takes forty minutes at most to get here."

"Not everyone's as set on being on time as you are, Thea." Blaise interrupted.

She was awarded with an annoyed look from her cousin, which immediately turned to shock, "Blaise, WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU WEARING?" Thea said out loud and Hannah's eyes widened slightly as she took in Blaise's form.

"What?" Blaise looked at her choice of clothes. She was wearing a tight, thigh-length leather skirt with slits up one thigh and a simple dark red shirt that opened at the top two buttons, revealing an Isis bloodstone hanging from a delicate silver chain. She wore identical earrings and black ankle boots. Her shiny midnight hair flown free over her shoulders, still slightly damp because she didn't have time to dry it properly. Light blue eye shadow lined her eyelids and the red lips were, well, still red, but with hint of shininess to them that told others it was only lip-gloss. Feeling smug with the stares that she'd been receiving from the people downstairs, Blaise smiled inwardly, yep, she definitely looked the part of the seductress.

"Blaise, we're greeting people, not going to a rave club." Thea reminded her.

"Well, you are the one that said that we should greet our guests properly. What do you want me to do, appear in a bathrobe with my facial mask on?" She replied. Quinn smirked at the last comment.

"Oh, all right, do whatever you like, just remember what you promised." Thea gave her a meaningful look.

Everyone's attention was turned to the door, and the voices that came from the other side of it. "I swear Phil, you get taller every time I see you."

"They're here!" Thea ran forward and turned the doorknob.

There were three people standing on the porch. One was a slight girl that looked no older than sixteen-year-old with coppery curls, bright green eyes and almost elfin features. The boy beside her was almost a head taller, with blond hair and identical green eyes, he had the kind of all-American good looks that would qualify as classically handsome in any place. Another boy stood behind them, he had silky brown hair, a subtle, intelligent face, and gray eyes that were alternately intense and cool. Right now he was watch the two in front of him talk with what looked like amusement in his eyes.

"Hi Poppy, hi James." Thea grinned, interrupting their conversation. 

"Hi, Thea! How are you?" Poppy hugged her without hesitation. 

Thea was smiling, "I'm fine, thanks. This is must be your brother Phil, right?" she turned to the blond boy, "It's nice to meet you, I'm Thea."

Phil nodded, "Hi Thea, Poppy's told me a lot about you."

"Just Thea? I'm jealous." Blaise said from behind, startling Thea.

"Of course not, Blaise, this is my brother, Phil. Phil, this is Blaise. She's the other witch girl I told you about." Poppy introduced the two.

Phil reached out a hand and said to Blaise, "Nice to meet you, Blaise." 

"Hello Phil." Blaise said in her most seductive voice and clasped the hand. 

Blaise was used to boys staring at her, even drooling, she had that effect on people. In fact, she prized herself on be able to shock them with just her physical appearance. Nevertheless, being shocked was always used by authors as figurative speech in literatures, it wasn't meant to happen literally.

Those authors obviously did not know what they were talking about.

As soon as their hands touched, Blaise felt like she was struck by lightening. She stared at Phil, and he stared back. Gray eyes meeting green ones, and everything had a hazy pink effect to it. Blaise blinked, tried to clear her mind, instead she just felt like she was falling, falling into endless brightness. No, wait, she's not falling anymore, she's floating, but not in water. She could feel someone else there as well, someone whose presence made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside. _I know you!_ Her mind cried out, _we know each other._ She felt like she could stay here forever, _Thea'd probably be thrilled to know that, _a little voice said. _Thea?_ _Hey, wait a minute, I'm not suppose to be here, I was in Thierry's mansion and and shaking hands with that Phil guy_ Blaise shook her head and jerked her hand back. She looked up to Phil, and saw that he was just as bewildered as she was. "Uhh nice to meet you too." She murmured and quickly stepped back.

Thea looked at her oddly, but decided to let it go, "So Phil, how about meeting the rest of the gang?" she pulled him towards the little group gathered near the stairs.

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All right, let's have a little poll, shall we?

All those in favor of soulmates sharing rooms please raise your hand and say Aye! (Aye!)

Please add your vote with the review, thanks guys!


	4. The Meeting Part 2

"Eric, are you sure you told Blaise to meet us over here", Thea Harman asked her boyfriend and soul mate, Eric Ross **__**

I really, really hate the SATs, who came up with that stuff anyway? Well, it's the testing season again, and I would probably be busier than usual. Don't worry guys, I will still post new chapters, and I WILL finish the story (don't you just hate it when people leave their stories undone?), but posting will probably be random, so just bear with me, folks. Texts in italics are what the character was thinking, and the texts in-between asterisks (*) are past events.

Disclaimer: hmm I seem to be repeating myself, so just rewind to the previous chapters and read the disclaimers, nothing's changed except the weather around here. I feel like I'm swimming in a giant bowl of oatmeal. Ugh! Not an attractive thought. One change for chapter three, I think I wrote "synthetically" instead of "sympathetically" when Quinn patted Ash on the back, my sincerest apologies to anyone who got confused by that. Isn't it amazing how often you find mistakes after the story's been posted? 

You must be tired of listening to me talking by now, so here's Chapter Four, enjoy!

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Blaise vs. Phil

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Chapter Four

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By: A Midsummer Night's Dreamer

In all the years of his existence, Phil had thought that he had seen all there was in the world of the magical and supernatural. After all, what could be weirder (not to mention unsettling) than having your own sister dying of a terminal disease and then turned into a vampire by her err soulmate and tried to bite you when she rose from the dead? 

He was obviously wrong.

* "Come on Phil! It'll be fun! I promise, they're really nice people!" Poppy, the ever-insistent sister, had followed him around for days saying the same thing over and over.

He had tried to retort in vain, "I'm not going to fit in and you know it, I'm not one of them." To tell the truth he was a little curious about this new organization that had sheltered Poppy and his... soulmate, Phil cringed at that word, he just can't imagine having James around his little sister all the time.

"Don't worry about that! There're people who're human there, and some of them are really friendly! Please, please Phil, I would be very happy if you came." Poppy had said in that sweet little girl voice and pouted.

He'd like to say that he was immune to that, but that would be lying. Although he did let Poppy beg just a little while longer before giving in. After all, he had thought, what harm could it do to meet some new people? *

Now that he thought about it, there were a great number of harms that could come with meeting new people.

Especially this particular group of people who could no doubt tore his throat out in less than five seconds without getting their hands dirty.

Ever since he'd agreed to come with Poppy to "just get acquainted with everyone", he'd been having these weird dreams. You know, the kind that you don't remember anything but a feeling, which, in this case, is the feeling that something's about to change his life forever. 

Phil did not like that feeling, he liked his life as it is. "Go ahead and call me a conservationist," he had said to Poppy on their way to Las Vegas, "but I happen to like my life and I'd prefer if it stayed this way, thank you very much."

His sister, as usual, was ignorant of his wishes, "Come and socialize," she urged him, "You'll meet a lot of great people, I promise! Who knows, maybe there might even be that special someone this time."

"That's what I was afraid of," muttered Phil.

He must admit, he was impressed with the mansion, the last time they came here he had climbed on the balcony, and it really wasn't the time to admire the fine structure when his sister was in danger of being executed. But this time, they came as guests, Phil could see the magnificent house up close, it was enormous! Black roses grew on the lawn and the same black flower design adorned the windows and the double door that was the main (and proper) entrance. 

The first person that Phil saw was a pretty blond girl with soft brown eyes. She and Poppy were obviously good friends and she didn't look very dangerous to him. That was a good first impression, he liked Thea instantly, and she didn't seem like the kind that would try to bite his neck.

Then came the girl with the mysterious smile. The girl who shook his hands and had–literally–shocked him speechless. The girl's wardrobe had scared him a little. She dressed like someone who is dangerous and seductive and Phil's instincts were telling him to stay away from her. But in order to show that he was as civil as the rest of them, he had–reluctantly–offered to shake her hand. Phil had known from the looks that she gave him that she was interested, and after hearing his sister introducing the girl–Blaise–as a witch, he was half-expecting her to do something weird–maybe putting a charm on him.

He was definitely NOT prepared to find himself being struck by lightning, surrounded by a bright light and feel absolutely content with it. He felt like he was floating in clouds, and they were changing colours constantly. Through the smoky clouds, he saw the silhouette of someone, a girl with long black hair. For some reason he wanted to get closer, but then something snapped, and the girl vanished. 

Half-dazed, Phil tried to get a better look at the girl, what was her name again? Oh yeah, Blaise. She was just as confused as he was, a bewildered look was in her eyes as she murmured something that sounded like "nice to meet you too" and retreated to the back. Phil got a glimpse of long, shiny dark hair and smoldering gray eyes before the blond girl–Thea–pulled him forward to meet the other people.

The next couple of minutes went by like a blur, he remembered all these people, looking at him with expressions ranging from sheer curiosity to downright boredom. He shook hands with every one of them and repeated the greeting phrase over and over again until he wasn't sure what it sounded like anymore. Then he was shown to his room where he was finally left alone for a couple of minutes.

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"You know," Poppy flopped down on the big mattress in her and James' room, "I think Phil really does like this place." She ran a hand through her coppery curls and made a face when it got tangled in the mess, looks like a shower is in order.

"How can you tell?" James asked from the floor where he was unpacking one of the luggage.

"I'm psychic, remember? Besides, did you see the look on his face when he saw Blaise?" Poppy got off the bed and set about finding her hairbrush.

"You mean, when he looked like the deer that got caught in the headlight?" James grinned, "Yeah, of course, I wished I had camera with me at that time though. Here, are you looking for this?" He fished out a hairbrush from the traveling bag and handed it to Poppy.

"Thanks!" Poppy smiled at him brilliantly and went into the bathroom to brush her hair. 

"You're welcome Aha!" James said triumphantly as he pulled out his favorite CD–the new Ethnotechno release. He set it on the table poured himself a glass of water from the pitcher. 

"Do you think Phil and Blaise make a good couple?" Poppy suddenly called out.

James almost choked on the water, "What? Phil and–Blaise? That's crazy! Do you know what Blaise is like? She goes through guys faster than her clothes and they were usually left broken and battered and insane."

A head full of messy coppery curls poked out of the bathroom, "Really? She didn't seem that bad the last time I met them. She was just distant." Poppy brushed back her hair.

"Believe me, you're better off that way. The only time Blaise gets friendly with you for no reason is when she sees something of yours that she can play with." James set down the cup. "Besides, we're not the ones who need to worry, Phil has his own mind, he'll figure out what is good for him."

Poppy nodded and ducked back to the bathroom. "That's too bad, you know. I was hoping that Phil could've find someone here." She sighed, better to let events develop on their own_. And pray that nothing out of the extraordinary would happen,_ a little voice inside of her head said.

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Phil stood in front of the mirror and blinked a few times. Nothing. Everything looked exactly the same. He rubbed his eyes and blinked again, then turned around to look at the room. The bed was there, covered in a dark green bedcover. The dresser looked normal enough, although it probably caused more money than the ones at his home. The table, the water pitcher and the chair all stayed right where they are. He looked down at his feet, brown, solid wooden floor. Everything looked ordinary. 

So it couldn't have been his eyes playing tricks at him a few minutes ago, when he saw nothing but white mist after shaking hands with that girl, no–Blaise, he corrected himself. 

"I'm probably just tired from the trip. Yep, jet lag, that's what it was. Purely physical fatigue." Phil said to himself aloud. "Nothing a few hours of sleep couldn't fix."

Apparently satisfied with his own explanation, Phil flopped down onto the bed and closed his eyes.

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Again, I apologize for taking so long, but my SAT I test is on June 2 and I have two ISPs due around the same time. Everything should be back to normal after June 2 I hope!

Can someone tell me a bit about Dark Angel? I haven't actually read the book so perhaps a simple summary of what happened? Also a description of Gillian and David would be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys!


	5. Just an average everyday life

"Eric, are you sure you told Blaise to meet us over here", Thea Harman asked her boyfriend and soul mate, Eric Ross **__**

I think I just experienced my first writer's block for the last chapter, but I seem to have beaten it now, so worry not folks!

My thanks to those that wished me good luck on the SAT, I heard that some colleges in California are going to abandon the requirement of SAT in the next few years, hopefully this whole testing thing would be nothing but bad memories in the next decade or so. 

Some minor mushy-romantic stuffs here, can't promise I'm good at it since I've never tried, but I don't think it's to the point where you would need a towel to wipe clean those drools. :-)

Disclaimer: I don't own them, I swear I don't! ::Sobbing hysterically:: Okay guys, I seriously don't own them, and if I did, Strange Fate would've come out by now, so try not to sue me over the characters that I claimed I don't own.

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Blaise vs. Phil

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Chapter Five

**__**

By: A Midsummer Night's Dreamer

Blaise scowled into the mirror, stupid, stupid. He was just a human–a vermin–and was only average handsome. She had seen better looks on guys in her past few years, and had left them heartbroken after taking what they were worth. She was the dark seductress, an Aphrodite incarnate, love was her game and she had been playing it like a master until now. She had been calm and level-headed, even when Ash tried to use his charm on her the last time, he had gotten a rather unexpected bolt of fire that, according to him, ruined his favourite sweat-shirt. Blaise had doubted that, but she was proud of the way she dealt with guys, she was a natural. _So how do you explain what happened out there with Phil?_ A little voice inside of her head said slyly, _you practically swooned right there and then. Could it be that the almighty Goddess of Love had finally found her match?_

__

Shut up, Blaise told the voice, _he means nothing._

She sighed, well, so much for the outfit. Blaise quickly changed into something more comfortable–black hiphugger jeans with a tight, dark green shirt that left her midriff bare. The party clothes were carelessly tossed on the ground and Blaise vowed to never wear them for as long as they live. At least, she thought with the faintest hint of satisfaction, Phil looked as shocked as she was.

"What's wrong with you?" A quiet voice startled Blaise, making her jump. 

She turned around, Thea stood in the doorway, looking at her curiously. "Ever heard of knocking?" she said irritatingly. 

"I did, you never answered and I got worried." Thea replied cheerfully, "So, what's going on?"

"My own business." Blaise snapped, "which I would thank you to keep out of. And shouldn't you be cuddling with your soulmate or something?"

"Oohhhhhh now I'm really concerned." Thea came into the room, "You don't lose your cool usually, okay, who is it this time?"

"Who what?" Blaise was confused.

"It's a guy, isn't it? The last time that you lost your temper was when Eric defied you." Thea said in a matter-of-fact manner.

Blaise groaned, "You had to remind me that? And no, it's not a guy. Now will you quite it already? You're beginning to sound like a damned psychiatrist."

Thea grinned, "I just know you too well, besides, who else are you going to talk to, Ash?"

Blaise laughed despite of herself.

"See?" Thea patted her arm, "You're feeling better already."

Blaise managed a fake smile, "Yes, whatever you say, O Great Counsellor, now can you please leave so I can take a shower?"

Thea smiled back, "Just be sure to come down to dinner on time, or we'll eat your share of the food." She turned and left Blaise alone.

Blaise sat down on the chair, okay, so the knock-me-dead outfit obviously hadn't been the right decision. Maybe she should just work her charm on Phil and see if he can resist that. But first, she need to eat something, dinner won't happen for another four hours.

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"Thierry?" Hannah knocked softly on the big oak door. "Are you in here?"

No response.

Hannah frowned, it was three o'clock in the afternoon, and normally Thierry should be in his office, reading those never-ending documents from Daybreakers all over the world, so where is he today?

She gently pushed open the door and poked her blond head in. The office was dark, and the curtains drawn.

Just as Hannah was about to call for her love a second time, a strong arm encircled her waist from behind, and pulled her against a warm, lean body. 

Hannah gasped, and was about to push the person away, when a deep voice murmured near her ear, "Looking for me?" 

"Thierry!" Hannah said almost loudly, "Why aren't you working?"

Thierry chuckled, and gently nuzzled at her neck, Hannah closed her eyes, revelling at the sensations from the feeling of his mouth on her neck and from the soulmate bond. "I thought you wanted me to take a break."

"I do, I do," Hannah's heartbeat quickened as he kept on kissing her neck, she was sure Thierry had heard it too, "In fact, I was just coming to ask if you wanted to take a walk through the garden."

"That sounds great," he murmured, "But right now, I can think of some more enjoyable activities that we can try."

Hannah smiled and turned in his arms so that she stood facing him, there was a mischievous glint in his dark eyes, "Do tell." She said softly.

Thierry led her into the darkened office and shut the door. He didn't bother to turn on the light, and for a few minutes Hannah's eyes couldn't focus on anything. Then, she felt his lips on hers, gently at first, and then deepened into something more teasing. His tongue licked her lips, and she opened her mouth to allow him to venture inside, her own tongue wrestling his. The soulmate bond brightened to an almost blinding light, and within it they caressed and expressed their love to each other.

The kiss went on for a long time and when they finally parted, both were out of breath. Hannah laid her head against Thierry's chest, trying to calm her erratic breathing.

"I've been waiting to do that all day," Thierry whispered, "Unfortunately things kept getting in my way."

Hannah grinned, "So what made you change your mind?"

"A couple of other soulmate couples in the house, I believe you know them, Thea and Eric?"

Hannah nodded, "Remind me to thank them after." She moved her arms upward until they rested above Thierry's shoulders, _they really are nice shoulders_, she thought absently and sighed contently, "This is nice, just the two of us, and no documents that are waiting to be viewed."

"I'm sorry," Thierry said guiltily, his left hand moved to tilt Hannah's chin upward and looked into her gray eyes, "I promise that from now on I will try to cut back on the works and spend more time with you."

Hannah's eyes brightened, "Really? You would do that for me?"

"Of course," he made a mental note to cancel all appointments for tomorrow, "we can have a picnic tomorrow, just the two of us."

Hannah smiled happily, "That would be great!"

Thierry's heart leapt at her obvious signs of happiness, "Glad to hear it, now, how about that walk through the gardens?"

Hannah nodded enthusiastically and they walked hand in hand out of the office.

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Eric grimaced when he opened the fridge. The downside of living in a house full of vampires is that they don't care what food is in the fridge as long as it's edible. He went through several jars of peanut butter, a whole stack of chocolate bars, bags of jellybeans and some kind unrecognizable soft drinks, until he finally settled on an apple.

Eric turned on the faucet to wash the fruit, so he didn't hear the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs. When he turned around, the sight of Blaise standing in the doorway almost made him jump.

"Jeez! Blaise!" his words came out a little rushed, "What are you doing here?"

Blaise gave him one of those looks that she reserved for the extremely stupid, "This is a kitchen, and a kitchen is a storage place for food. What do you think I'm here for? A massage?" 

"No, of course not," Eric mentally smacked himself for saying such a stupid thing. "You just startled me, that's all."

"Really? Wow! I scared Eric! The guy who faced down a spirit from the netherworld!" Blaise exclaimed sarcastically.

"You're not in a very good mood, are you?" Eric observed.

"However did you guess?" Blaise rolled her eyes.

"You're not usually this snappy." He said carefully.

"And you're spending way too much time with Thea, you're even beginning to sound like her." Blaise opened the fridge.

And promptly closed it, "Good god, did I wander into the sweetshop by mistake?"

Eric grinned, "Apparently vampires don't have to watch what they eat."

"That what I said the first time I saw the fridge." A new voice said behind them.

Both of them turned around, a short, round-faced girl who looked about the age of sixteen stood there. She had auburn-coloured hair and brown eyes. She's quite pretty and well built; one could tell right away that she is a sports-person. 

And she's wearing mismatching socks.

The girl seemed a little uncomfortable under their stared, she stepped forward, breaking the silence, "Hi, I'm Maggie Neely."

Eric blinked, so this is the soulmate of the vampire prince, "Oh, hi Maggie, I'm Eric Ross. I just got here yesterday."

Maggie nodded, smiling briefly, "Yeah, Delos said that he heard people come in last night."

"Speaking of soulmates," Blaise interrupted, "Has anyone seen Thierry or Hannah? I really think they should have a look at the content of this fridge."

Maggie laughed, "I think I saw them in the garden not so long ago. But I'd advise you to wait until they come back; it's so rare that those two gets to spend a little time together. You must be Blaise, Thea's cousin, right?"

Blaise made a face, "Yeah, the next thing you know I would just be known as Thea's cousin' and nothing else."

"Sorry, it's just that she mentioned you and I didn't want to get the names wrong." Maggie apologized.

Eric grinned, "Don't mind her," he told Maggie, "Blaise is just being grumpy today. So where's Delos, is he still practicing the violins?"

Maggie's eyes brightened at the mentioning of her soulmate's name, "Oh, on, he decided that he's had enough of those, and I quote, extremely unpleasant cacophonies known to mankind', and stashed everything last one of them in the storage room."

"Man! That's a major waste of money! I hope Thierry haven't seen it yet." Blaise murmured.

"Haven't seen what?" A male voice startled them all.

Thierry stood in the doorway, his arm around Hannah. An amused look in both of their eyes.

"Umm nothing, nothing at all." Blaise said a little too quickly.

"Yeah, nothing really, just a few old friends catching up." Eric corroborated.

"Yeah that's it we're just catching up err getting to know each other, you know, like what new people do to make friends. So, how about a movie, guys?" Maggie practically dragged the other two out of the door.

"That sounds great, see you later!" the trio ran off, presumably to the living room. Leaving Thierry and Hannah alone in the kitchen.

"So, what do you think that was about?" Hannah leaned on Thierry.

"The bill, or the food in the fridge?" There was a playful tone in his voice.

"Probably the bill," Hannah said after a second, "But I've been meaning to ask you about the food as well."

"You don't like it?" Thierry was surprised.

"No, it's not that, it's just well, we humans still have to watch what we eat, and if I ate all those confectioneries I would gain an awful lot of weight." She giggled, after imagining herself with thirty pounds more weight on her body.

Thierry kissed her lightly on the nose, "Ahh, but you would still look beautiful to me."

"Oh you!" Hannah laughed and playfully hit his chest.

Thierry caught her hand the second time, and drew her close to him. "I mean it, you're beautiful." He murmured softly before capturing her lips in a sweet kiss.

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I know I know, it's not a very good place to cut off, but this chapter is already longer than most so I just thought that I should continue this in the next chapter which is coming soon!

Thank you all for the wonderful reviews, keep them coming!


	6. Frisbee is an outdoor activity

Blaise vs. Phil

This is really bad, looks like I have suffered a relapse of the dreaded writer's block. That's part of the reason why this chapter came out so late. (You guys should've seen the first draft, it looks worse!) Anyway the main reason for posting this so late is because due to the universal delay: Exams! Whew! Glad that's over. Now it's hello summertime! Hmm… still need to write a speech for a great teacher who's leaving soon. Work never ends!

Warning: There might be some minor swearing in parts of the story.

Disclaimer: Oh yeah, by the way, I don't own the characters. And if I'm sued… you'll never find me! Mumhahahaha!

Blaise vs. Phil 

Chapter Six 

By: A Midsummer Night's Dreamer 

Thea grimaced at the sight of the stack of documents in front of her. She was sitting inside the enormous study of the mansion, which was decorated with elaborated paintings and soft light. The chair that she was sitting on was covered in velvet and the table was solid oak, with everything from simple mechanical pencils to gold-plated pens spread over it. Everything was designed to make the worker feel more comfortable. _Except for the work itself_, thought Thea. 

Nilsson was still bringing in more papers that would need to be completed before this week ends. And the pile in front of Thea was getting higher by the minute. _With any luck_, she thought absently, _I'll have a higher stack then Thierry's._

A heavy thump beside her brought Thea back to reality, "That's the last of it, Miss." Nilsson said with a sympathetic tone. 

Thea sighed, well, better get to work, "Thanks Nilsson, really appreciate it."

Nilsson nodded, "You're welcome, Miss. And good luck." He turned and walked to the doorway.

He was about to close the door when Thea suddenly called out, "Oh, Nilsson, if you don't mind, can you please tell Eric and Blaise to gather all the people they can get here so we can start working?"

Nilsson nodded in that traditional butler way, bowed slightly, "Certainly, it's no trouble at all." He walked away quietly, without closing the door entirely.

Thea took a deep breath, and opened the first document – The debrief reports from South-eastern United States.

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"Whew! That was close!" Maggie laughed after they got out of the kitchen. Instead of walking towards the living room, they walked deeper into the hallway, where the library and the offices are.

"Yeah, I thought for sure that he was going to find out." Eric grinned and patted Maggie on the back, "Well done back there, couldn't have handled it better myself."

"Wait a minute," Blaise said suddenly, causing them to freeze in their tracks. 

"What's wrong?" Eric asked nervously. Blaise was speaking in the spooky fortune-teller tone and he wasn't sure if he liked it. 

"Don't you think it's just a little odd that Thierry hasn't seen the credit card bills yet?" Blaise narrowed her eyes, "Maggie, when did Delos get those violins?" 

Maggie blinked and thought for a few seconds, "Two weeks ago… I think. I'm terrible at dates though, it could be two and a half weeks ago."

"Exactly!" Blaise was really getting into the mood. "And as we all know, credit card bills don't take that long to arrive."

"Yeah," Eric had to agree, "Those companies really wants their money."

"Would you stop interrupting me?!" Blaise glared at him before continuing, "I know Thierry, the one thing that he cares about the most – besides Hannah – is the smooth running of Circle Daybreak. There is absolutely no way that he could've left a billing letter unopened for that long." 

Eric opened his mouth and closed it immediately, he'd hate to think what Blaise would do if he didn't shut up. Maggie was less cautious and concluded quickly, "Man! We worried over nothing!"

A round object flew past them, missing Eric by a few centimetres and hit the wall behind Blaise; Maggie screamed. 

Eric tried to calm his own erratic breathing before he bent down and picked up a bright green Frisbee. "What the—" his words were cut short by the sight of an average-height boy with black hair running up to them. 

"Quinn!" Blaise growled through clenched teeth. Maggie looked a bit sheepish at her own outburst earlier. 

"Sorry!" he shouted, came up to Eric and took the Frisbee from him. Blaise grabbed him by the arm, "What do you think you are doing? This is a hallway, for crying out loud, people don't expect things to jump out at them!"

Quinn simply shrugged and turned around to yell at someone further ahead in the hall, "Hey Rachel! I don't think they want us to practice in the house!"

A dark-haired girl emerged; she was dressed all in black—black shirt, black pants, and black hiking boots. Her cheek was a little flushed from running, and she was grinning triumphantly.

Maggie's eyes widened in acknowledgement, "You're Rachel The Cat? The vampire slayer?"

Rachel turned to her curiously, "How did you know that?"

Maggie smiled mischievously, "I'm psychic, I saw you in a dream." When no one believed her, she surrendered, "Okay, okay, I asked Ash, happy? I've never met a vampire hunter before."

Quinn snorted, "I'm surprised that Ash remembers anyone besides his own soulmate."

Rachel elbowed him playfully, "Oh, don't mind him, he's just jealous because I happened to be a better hunter than he is." She winked at Maggie.

Eric coughed politely, "Sorry to break this up, but don't you guys think it would be better to do this outside? After all, Frisbee is meant to play on open ground."

Rachel thought about it for a minute, "Sure, want to join us?" Maggie nodded enthusiastically, once a sports person, always a sports person.

Eric and Blaise watched as the three walked off in the direction of the garden, "Guess that's the end of the brief friendly introduction," Blaise said, turning to walk away. "See ya later."

Two hands clamped onto Eric and Blaise's shoulders, making them jump, Thea appeared. "I was just looking for you two." She told them, "Nice of you to join me." Thea dragged the two of them through the door on her left, shutting it to cut off any sounds of protesting.

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Ash yawned and looked at the clock, Five-thirty p.m., hell, he practically slept the whole day away. He stumbled off bed, not bothering to look at himself in the mirror—he probably looks very scary anyway—and headed to the shower.

_After the shower…_ (**_No, I'm not going to describe how he looks in the shower, use your imaginations.) ::wink::_**

Ash pull on a clean black T-shirt with a Black Iris imprinted on it, he still felt a bit woozy—probably from slept too much—so he walked down the stairs to find some coffee.

James was in the living room when Ash walked in. He was bent over the big stereo in the back and fiddling with some buttons.

"Careful, you might break it," Ash said casually, "On second thought, go ahead, try to touch the part of the wire that's frayed."

"Haha." James responded without looking up, "I think it's already broken, I can't get it to play any CD."

"Did you try plug in the cord?" Ash asked sarcastically.

James looked up, "Did you just get up? That's kinda late even for you."

Ash sighed, "Do I have to tell everyone? Yes! I couldn't sleep last night so I decided to make up for it this morning!"

"Hi, Jamie!" Poppy bounced in from the kitchen, holding two cokes in her hand. "Want something to drink?" She noticed Ash a moment later, "Err… good evening Ash, you look terrible."

James smirked and took the coke that Poppy offered. Ash snorted. "Yes well, not everyone can look picture-perfect right out of bed."

"Well, if you want coffee, you have to make it yourself. That last pot was nasty so I poured it down the sink." Poppy told him cheerfully.

"Hey!" Ash protested indignantly, "I made that last pot!" He strode through the door to the kitchen, muttering under his breath, "Wasted a perfectly good pot of coffee."

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Well, not much action happened, this is more of a transitional chapter. I think I'll get Gillian and David to arrive before dinner starts—they've been away long enough! Poor Blaise and Eric, stuck with Thea doing paperwork, ::smirk:: what can I say, I'm evil. 

**_ _**

**_So, does anyone think that Ash should take Quinn's advice and call Mary-Lynnette? Please add your opinion in the review. (By the way, has a year's time already past in Book Nine?)_**


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